Kostelny seeks recount in judge race loss to Tegeler

AURORA – There was no change in vote totals between Kane County Associate Judge Marmarie Kostelny and himself, D.J. Tegeler said Monday, after the Aurora Election Commission conducted a discovery recount of two precincts in the March 18 Republican primary.

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Kostelny filed a recount petition after she lost to Tegeler by seven votes in the 16th Judicial Circuit, third sub-circuit. A second recount will be held next week at the Kane County Clerk’s office in Geneva.

Aurora Election Commission officials were not available to comment on the outcome of the recount, but Tegeler, who was there, reported there was no change in the totals.

Tegeler and Kostelny were both seeking a vacancy that will be left by Judge Karen Simpson, who plans to retire Oct. 6. Associate judges are appointed, and circuit judges are elected.

According to the Illinois State Board of Elections official certified results of their race, Kostelny got 6,213 and Tegeler got 6,220, a difference of seven votes, based on results provided by the Kane County Clerk and the Aurora Election Commission. Tegeler received 433 votes and Kostelny received 502 in Aurora, records show.

Because Kostelny received votes equal to at least 95 percent of those received by Tegeler, state law provides that votes in specific precincts may be recounted.

According to a similar petition Kostelny filed with the Kane County Clerk, 16 precincts will be recounted in Sugar Grove, Rutland, Blackberry, Plato, Campton, Hampshire and Elgin townships.

This discovery recount will be from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. May 5 to May 7 at the Kane County Clerk’s office, Building B in the Government Center, 719 S. Batavia Ave., Geneva. A lunch period will be from noon to 1 p.m. each day.

“They will hand-count them through the paper trail. They will take that paper trail and go through those votes, looking at bar codes to see how they voted,” Cunningham said. “The real problem here is with early voting. Some in the sub-circuit could have voted at the early voting sites. We have to find those ballots that were cast there.”

Cunningham said his staff would work three stations, one for regular voting, one for early votes and one for absentee and write-in votes.